C'mon Hollywood #226

Despite all the merger, sequel and reboot drama circulating within the comic book film universe lately, thereís one project in particular thatís caught my eye and has me relatively stoked: THE GREEN LANTERN. I wasnít always a true believer, but after watching FIRST FLIGHT (GLís animated origin story) I immediately got on board. The sheer character depth and cosmic overtone was too much to resist. GLís storyline is perfect for the big screen as long as Hollywood follows the proper guidelines and keeps this thing serious as opposed to ridiculous. More than that, this film looks fun (THE DARK KNIGHT sort of fun), intriguing and more or less takes us in a different and original direction for a change.

If you have ANY interest in GL, watch this first

I have no doubt whatsoever that Ryan Reynolds can hold his own as GL (though personally I was rooting for Bradley Cooper, who deserves his own breakout franchise opportunity). Itís a little weird seeing him juggle Hal Jordan AND Deadpool, but Iíve been a ďYES MANĒ for Ryan Reynolds since VAN WILDER and Iím not about to give up on the guy now (despite the fact he dated Alanis Morissette, which still has me scratching my head to this day). Hal Jordanís attitude, dialogue and persona are something Reynolds will have no problem running with, and I for one am excited to see him in action.

I think Reynolds will do just fine in both cases

As far as Villains are concerned, Iím no expert in the ways of GLís roster. Sinestro was totally bad ass in FIRST FLIGHT, and though heís not the villain this time around, heís still very much a part of the story. Rumor has it Jackie Earl Haley is up for the role (though people seem to be screaming for Hugo Weaving, which I could also get on board with), and with the exception of physical prowess, Iím thinking Haley is far from the worst choice. Iím unfamiliar with Legion as well as Hector Hammond but they sound pretty good as far as antagonists go and are explained (in the script) with clarity and realism, despite the obvious supernatural overtones. Will they remain that way? Letís hope so.

I like Haley but it's hard to argue with this logic

My biggest worry here comes in the form of CGI effects, which is a bit of a ďdoís and donítsĒ game. There are two tricky areas here that could seriously make or break the film if they screw the pooch. One; is the fact that ninety-nine percent of the Green Lanterns are aliens. How they handle the visual details here is crucial, as too much CGI will kill the vibe pretty quick (Kilowog comes to mind here as a primary example). The second (and most important in my mind); is how they portray the ringís power. You can get away with green light taking the form of giant hands that bitch slap people, or nets and things of that nature in the comics and in the animated world, but that shit wonít fly on the big screen and will suck the seriousness (and life) out of the film all too quickly.

They look cool here but will they transcend well to the big screen?

I love that DC is upping their ante and treating their comic book films like itís the ďall or nothing days.Ē The first draft of the GL script is fantastic, and Iím not the only one who thinks so as many people are raving about it. If they keep this script relatively intact, focus on making the GL powers look believable and keep the tone edgy and serious, Iím thinking this could spell ďWINĒ across the board for everyone involved. However, the sad truth of the matter is that there are so many things that could go wrong and cause this thing to crash and burn. Luckily (as I said), DC have their game faces on and are not only trying to give Marvel a run for their money (which I feel they most certainly are), they seem to be trying their damndest to give the fans what they want as well. And at the end of the day, thatís about all we can really ask for. Hereís hoping they have a new blockbuster franchise on the horizon.

Extra Tidbit:

DC really is on fire lately, even in the video game world as BATMAN ARKHAM ASYLUM was ten times the game MARVEL ULTIMATE ALLIANCE 2 was, despite the fact they used the Civil War storyline.

I've always been a pretty big GL fan, with the Hal Jordan story arcs anyways. I've been increasingly interested in this movie and so far I think they're on course to make something good. All the points hit in the article are the same concerns I have. We'll see as things progress how they're going to treat it, I suppose.

I've always been a pretty big GL fan, with the Hal Jordan story arcs anyways. I've been increasingly interested in this movie and so far I think they're on course to make something good. All the points hit in the article are the same concerns I have. We'll see as things progress how they're going to treat it, I suppose.

I need to watch the last half of that film but I was digging it. I really hope this film does come together and its good. But how much of a Box Office draw is Green Lantern? He isn't the most well known DC character, I assume Reynolds is a big enough name to draw people in.

I need to watch the last half of that film but I was digging it. I really hope this film does come together and its good. But how much of a Box Office draw is Green Lantern? He isn't the most well known DC character, I assume Reynolds is a big enough name to draw people in.

I feel pretty confident this movie will deliver the goods. this is the kind of movie i want to be loaded with cgi. overzealous cgi can almost ruin a movie at times, but i when i look at things like the recent star trek i know it can be done right.

I feel pretty confident this movie will deliver the goods. this is the kind of movie i want to be loaded with cgi. overzealous cgi can almost ruin a movie at times, but i when i look at things like the recent star trek i know it can be done right.

Uh...

I really like Martin Campbell, and Ryan Reynolds, so I'm hoping for a great comic book action flick. But I never liked the Green Lantern. It's a guy with a powerful ring. Doesn't that seem stupid too anybody else. A damn ring, is the source of all this guy's power. Green Lantern is one of the lamest DC superheros.

I wish Campbell and Reynolds were working on Daredevil or Deadpool, or even Punisher. Oh well, I hope Campbell can make Green Lantern: The Man with the Fancy Ring, exciting.

I really like Martin Campbell, and Ryan Reynolds, so I'm hoping for a great comic book action flick. But I never liked the Green Lantern. It's a guy with a powerful ring. Doesn't that seem stupid too anybody else. A damn ring, is the source of all this guy's power. Green Lantern is one of the lamest DC superheros.

I wish Campbell and Reynolds were working on Daredevil or Deadpool, or even Punisher. Oh well, I hope Campbell can make Green Lantern: The Man with the Fancy Ring, exciting.

CGI is key

You know I have to agree with you regarding the cgi, I recently watched the GI Joe movie, and as great as it was i really had to look over some seriously shotty cgi work. I mean for the budget and affects that were thrown at this movie, some of the cgi looked like it was done ten years ago. With todays techonolgy and the comapanys available out there, it should have looked flawless...so when looking at Green lantern, this isa movie that is going to require key cgi moments, and that these

You know I have to agree with you regarding the cgi, I recently watched the GI Joe movie, and as great as it was i really had to look over some seriously shotty cgi work. I mean for the budget and affects that were thrown at this movie, some of the cgi looked like it was done ten years ago. With todays techonolgy and the comapanys available out there, it should have looked flawless...so when looking at Green lantern, this isa movie that is going to require key cgi moments, and that these scenes be done extremely well, but not overdone, we dont need another land of the lost on our hands. Renolds..meh...not sure about him as an action star yet but Im game to give him a shot.

GL the new Star Wars

This has the potential to be the franchise that fills in the Star Wars vacuum: it's got everything the Empire has, but it's set on present-day Earth. The CGI can be done by explaining (visually!) that whatever you imagine, materializes. So it makes sense that you would materialize giant hands, if you're human. But...each species must visualize based on their unique biology, or yes, you just get a Saturday-morning cartoon.

This has the potential to be the franchise that fills in the Star Wars vacuum: it's got everything the Empire has, but it's set on present-day Earth. The CGI can be done by explaining (visually!) that whatever you imagine, materializes. So it makes sense that you would materialize giant hands, if you're human. But...each species must visualize based on their unique biology, or yes, you just get a Saturday-morning cartoon.